Panama City CRA board votes to defund 25 Flock cameras
The short version: Panama City's Community Redevelopment Agency board voted to pull funding for 25 Flock Safety ALPR cameras, a rare case of local officials clawing back surveillance dollars.
Our Take
Credit to WMBB News 13 for covering a story that doesn't get enough airtime: a local board actually pumping the brakes on Flock spending. Panama City's CRA board voting to defund 25 cameras is the kind of oversight win that usually only happens when someone on the board starts asking what these systems actually cost taxpayers versus what they deliver in public safety. That math often doesn't hold up once the marketing fades.
These votes matter because ALPR networks tend to expand quietly through budget line items, not public debate. Once dozens of cameras are logging every plate that passes, rolling that back takes real political will, and it rarely happens. Panama City just showed other cities it's possible to hit pause and reconsider.
If you want to see how saturated your own area is with this kind of tracking infrastructure, check our camera map, and if you'd rather not wait for your city council to catch up, our take-action page has steps for pushing the issue locally.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of WMBB News 13, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.